EP2081106A1

EP2081106A1 - Computer peripheral

Info

Publication number: EP2081106A1
Application number: EP08150452A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Yi Chang Chen
Original assignee: YFY RFID Technologies Co Ltd
Current assignee: YFY RFID Technologies Co Ltd
Priority date: 2008-01-21
Filing date: 2008-01-21
Publication date: 2009-07-22

Abstract

A computer peripheral having both a mouse function and a GPS function is enclosed. The computer peripheral comprises a mouse encoder; a GPS device, a switch module, and a function controller. The switch module comprises a first port and a second port, wherein the first port is electrically connected to the mouse encoder and the second port is electrically connected to the GPS device. The function controller is used for selectively allowing a signal corresponding to one of the mouse encoder and the GPS device to be transmitted out of the computer peripheral in coordination with the switch module switching between the first port and the second port.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCES TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

Not applicable.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to a computer peripheral. Mor e particularly, the present invention relates to a computer peripheral having the function of a global positioning system (GPS).

Descriptions of the Related Art

Due to the internationalization, business people usually have to travel to many unfamiliar places for some tasks, such as giving presentations, attending meetings or paying courtesy visit to their clients. For the situation like this, business people usually need to carry computers, computer peripherals, and global positioning system (GPS) devices.
A computer, such as a laptop, is used for presentation and/or demonstrations. A computer peripheral, such as a mouse and/or a laser pointer, is used in corporation with the computer for the convenience and the fluency of the presentations and/or demonstrations. A GPS device is required to show the directions of their destinations to prevent them from getting lost or being late in a strange city.
Computers, computer peripherals, and GPS devices on the markets today are all in large sizes. Sizes of the computers, such as laptops, are reduced greatly in recent years. As to computer peripherals and GPS devices, their sizes do not change much. Therefore, carrying all of them together are still burdens to business people.
According to the above disadvantages and situations, how to reduce the burdens so that business people can travel conveniently is still a critical issue in this field.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

An objective of this invention is to provide a computer peripheral with the function of global positioning system (GPS). The computer peripheral comprises a mouse encoder, a GPS device, a switch module, and a function controller. The switch module comprises a first port and a second port. The first port is electrically connected to the mouse encoder, while the second port is electrically connected to the GPS device. The function controller selectively allows a signal corresponding to one of the mouse encoder and the GPS device to be transmitted out of the computer peripheral in coordination with the switch module switching between the first port and the second port.
With the aforementioned arrangement, the present invention integrates the GPS function within a single computer peripheral. A user therefore can carry only one single device but still use the two different functions.
The detailed technology and preferred embodiments implemented for the subject invention are described in the following paragraphs accompanying the appended drawings for people skilled in this field to well appreciate the features of the claimed invention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 illustrates a first embodiment of the present invention;
FIG. 2 illustrates a second embodiment of the present invention;
FIG. 3 illustrates a third embodiment of the present invention;
FIG. 4 illustrates a fourth embodiment of the present invention; and
FIG. 5 illustrates a fifth embodiment of the present invention.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

FIG. 1 illustrates a first embodiment of the present invention, which is a computer peripheral 1. The computer peripheral 1 comprises a mouse encoder 101, a GPS device 102, a switch module 103, a function controller 104, and a universal serial bus (USB) connector 105.
The mouse encoder 101 conforms to the USB human interface device (HID) specification and is able to perform a mouse function like an optical mouse, a roller mouse, and/or any other mouse does. For example, the mouse encoder 101 may be an HT82M99A micro-controller (MCU) manufactured by the Holtek Semiconductor Inc. The GPS device 102 comprises a GPS chip 102a and a bridge 102b and is able to perform a GPS function like any GPS device does. The GPS chip 102a follows a universal asynchronous receiver transmitter (UART) output standard. For example, the GPS chip 102a may be an MT3318F IC manufactured by the MediaTek Inc. The bridge 102b may be an FT232BL IC manufactured by the FTDI Chip. It is noted that the aforementioned specific ICs are used as examples but not to limit the present invention.
The switch module 103 comprises a first port 103a and a second port 103b, wherein the first port 103a is electrically connected to the mouse encoder 101 and the second port 103b is electrically connected to the GPS device 102. In this embodiment, the switch module 103 may be a firmware or an FSUSB11 IC manufactured by Fairchild Semiconductor. Again, the specific IC is not used to limit the present invention. The function controller 104 is electrically connected to the switch module 103 to control switching. More specifically, the function controller 104 is used for selectively allowing a signal coming from the mouse encoder 101 or the GPS device 102 to be transmitted out of the computer peripheral 1 in coordination with the switch module 103 switching between the first port 103a and the second port 103b, which will be explained in details later.
Say that a user is on a business travel or a trip and would like to know the direction to the destination. A GPS function is required. In order to achieve that, the user connects the USB connector 105 of the computer peripheral 1 with a computer. In this embodiment, the default function of the computer peripheral 1 is the mouse function. It means that the user has to enable the GPS function by the function controller 104 after connecting the USB connector 105 to the computer. In this embodiment, the function controller 104 is a button, so the user can enable the GPS function by pushing the button.
When the GPS function is enabled, a signal coming from the GPS device 102 can be transmitted out of the computer peripheral 1. To be more specific, the bridge 102b is electrically connected to the GPS chip 102a and the second port 103b and is configured for converting the UART output standard into a USB standard. Consequently, when the GPS chip 102a generates a GPS signal with the UART output standard, the bridge 102b converts the GPS signal with the UART output standard into the USB standard. After the conversion, the signal with the USB standard is outputted to the second port 103b of the switch module 103. Since the function controller 104 allows a signal inputted to the second port 103b to pass, the signal with the USB standard is able to be transmitted out of the computer peripheral 1 to the computer through the USB connector 105. The computer runs GPS software to process the GPS signal. Thus, the user can know the direction to the destination on a screen of the computer.
On the other hand, if the user wants to use the mouse function after using the GPS function, the user simply enables the mouse function by the function controller 104. Since the function controller 104 is a button in this embodiment, the user can enable the mouse function by pushing the function controller 104. When the mouse function is enabled, a signal coming from the mouse encoder 101 can be transmitted out of the computer peripheral 1.
In this embodiment, the default function of the computer peripheral 1 is the mouse encoder. However, the default function may be the GPS function in other embodiments. The function controller 104 can be a switch in other embodiments.
According to the aforementioned description, the mouse encoder 101 and the GPS device 102 are integrated in one single device, i.e. the computer peripheral 1. Users can switch between the GPS function and the mouse function by simply pressing the function controller 104.
FIG. 2 illustrates a second embodiment of the present invention, which is also a computer peripheral 2. The computer peripheral 2 comprises a mouse encoder 101, a GPS device 102, a switch module 103, a function controller 204, and a USB connector 105.
The switch module 103 comprises a first port 103a and a second port 103b, wherein the first port 103a is electrically connected to the mouse encoder 101 and the second port 103b is electrically connected to the GPS device 102. The function controller 204 selectively allows a signal coming from the mouse encoder 101 or the GPS device 102 to be transmitted out of the computer peripheral 2 in coordination with the switch module 103 switching between the first port 103a and the second port 103b. Unlike the function controller 104 in the first embodiment which controls the switch module 103 to achieve the selection, the function controller 204 directly controls the mouse encoder 102 and the GPS device 104 to achieve the selection.
Similarly, a user can switch the mouse function and the GPS function via the function controller 204, which is also a button in this embodiment. However, the function controller may be a switch in other embodiments. Assume that the default function of the computer peripheral 2 is the mouse function. When a user firstly pushes the function controller 204, it means that the user switches from the mouse function to the GPS function. In other words, a signal coming from the GPS device is desired. Therefore, the function controller 204 activates the GPS device 102 and turns off the mouse encoder 101. After the activation, the signal coming from the GPS device 102 forces the switch module 103 to switch on the second port 103b. The signal can be transmitted out of the computer peripheral 2 through the USB connector 105 thereby.
When the user pushes the function controller 204 again, it means that the user would like to switch from the GPS function to the mouse function. In other words, a signal coming from the mouse encoder is desired. The function controller 204 now activates the mouse encoder 101 and turns off the GPS device 102. After activation, the signal coming from the mouse encoder 101 forces the switch module 103 to switch on the first port 103a. The signal can be transmitted out of the computer peripheral 2 through the USB connector 105 thereby.
In this embodiment, the default function of the computer peripheral 2 is the mouse encoder. However, the default function may be the GPS functions in other embodiments. The second embodiment provides an alternative way to integrate the mouse encoder 101 and the GPS device 102 within a single device, i.e. the computer peripheral 2.
FIG. 3 illustrates a third embodiment of the present invention, which is a computer peripheral 3 for use in a wireless environment. The computer peripheral 3 comprises a mouse encoder 101, a GPS device 302, a switch module 303, and a function controller 304.
The mouse encoder 101 is the same as that in the first embodiment. The GPS device 302 is able to perform a GPS function like any GPS device does. For example, the GPS device 302 may be an MT3318F IC manufactured by the MediaTek Inc. The switch module 303 also comprises a first port 303a and a second port 303b, wherein the first port 303a is electrically connected to the mouse encoder 101 and the second port 303b is electrically connected to the GPS device 302. Furthermore, the switch module 303 is a Bluetooth processor and may be a BCM2037 IC manufactured by Broadcom Cooperation.
The function controller 304 is electrically connected to the switch module 303 to control the switching. The function controller 304 selectively allows a signal coming from the mouse encoder 101 or the GPS device 302 to be transmitted out of the computer peripheral 3 in coordination with the switch module 303 switching between the first port 303a and the second port 303b.
The user may use the function controller 304 to switch between the GPS device 302 and the mouse encoder 101, i.e. to enable one of the GPS function and the mouse function. Similar to the first embodiment, as the GPS function of the computer peripheral 3 is enabled, a signal coming from the GPS device 302 can be transmitted out of the computer peripheral 3. On the other hand, as the mouse function is enabled, a signal coming from the mouse encoder 101 can be transmitted out of the computer peripheral 3.
According to the aforementioned description, the user also can have a computer peripheral that has both the mouse function and the GPS function even in a wireless environment. The user can switch between the mouse function and the GPS function by simply using the function controller 304.
FIG. 4 illustrates a fourth embodiment of the present invention, which is a computer peripheral 4 for use in a wireless environment. The computer peripheral 4 comprises a mouse encoder 101, a GPS device 302, a switch module 303, and a function controller 404.
The mouse encoder 101, the GPS device 302, and the switch module 303 are the same as those in the third embodiment, so their functionalities and connections are not repeated. The function controller 404 selectively allows a signal coming from the mouse encoder 101 or the GPS device 302 to be transmitted out of the computer peripheral 4 in accordance with the switch module 303 switching between the first port 303a and the second port 303b.
A user can use the function controller 404 to switch between the mouse encoder 101 and the GPS device 302. To be more specific, if the mouse function is performing, the user can use the function controller 404 to enable the GPS function and disable the mouse function. On the other hand, if the GPS function is performing, the user can use the function controller 404 to enable the mouse function and disable the GPS function.
Similar to the second embodiment, when the user uses the function controller 404 to switch to the GPS device 302, meaning that a signal coming from the GPS device 302 is desired, the function controller 404 activates the GPS device 302 and turns off the mouse encoder 101. After the activation, the signal coming from the GPS device 302 forces the switch module 303 to switch on the second port 103b. When the user uses the function controller 404 to switch to the mouse encoder 101, meaning that a signal coming from the mouse encoder 101 is desired, the function controller 404 activates the mouse encoder 101 and turns off the GPS device 302. After the activation, the signal coming from the mouse encoder 101 forces the switch module 103 to switch on the first port 103a.
The function controller 404 provides an alternative approach for the user to switch between the GPS function and the mouse function.
FIG. 5 illustrates a fifth embodiment of the present invention, which is a computer peripheral 5 for use in a wireless environment. The computer peripheral 5 comprises a mouse encoder 501, a GPS device 502, a switch module 503, a function controller 504, a first wireless processor 505, and a second wireless processor 506.
The mouse encoder 501 is able to perform a mouse function like a wireless optical mouse, a wireless roller mouse, and/or any other wireless mouse does. For example, the mouse encoder 501 may be a CYRF69103 IC manufactured by the Cypress Semiconductor. The mouse encoder 501 comprises a power pin 501a. The GPS device 502 is similar to the GPS device 302 in the third and fourth embodiments with a power pin 502a.
The switch module 503 comprises a first port 503a and a second port 503b, wherein the first port 503a is electrically connected to the power pin 501a of the mouse encoder 501 and the second port 503b is electrically connected to the power pin 502a of the GPS device 502.
The function controller 504 selectively allows a signal coming from the mouse encoder 501 or the GPS device 502 to be transmitted out of the computer peripheral 5 in coordination with the switch module 503 switching between the first port 503a and the second port 503b. To be more specific, the function controller 504 controls the switch module 503 to power on one of the mouse encoder 501 and the GPS device 502.
The functionalities of the function controller 504 are similar to those of the function controllers 104, 204, 304, 404. That is, a user can use the function controller 504 to switch between the mouse encoder 501 and the GPS device 502, i.e. to enable one of the mouse function and the GPS function.
Assume that the function controller 504 is a button and assume that the user has pushed the function controller 504 in order to activate the mouse function. The function controller 504 controls the switch module 503 to power on the mouse encoder 501. After that, the first wireless processor 505 will transmit a signal coming from the mouse encoder 501 out of the computer peripheral 5. In the embodiment, the first wireless processor 505 is a wireless USB processor. On the other hand, assume that the user has pushed the function controller 504 in order to activate the GPS function. The function controller 504 controls the switch module 503 to power on the GPS device 502. After that, the second wireless processor 506 will transmit a signal coming from the GPS device 502 out of the computer peripheral 5. In the embodiment, the second wireless processor 506 is a Bluetooth processor or a wireless USB processor.
In other embodiments, the function controller 504 may be a switch to switch between the mouse encoder 501 and the GPS device 502 instead of powering them on.
With the aforementioned arrangement, the present invention integrates a mouse function and a GPS function within a single computer peripheral. A user therefore can carry only one single device but still use the two different functions.
The above disclosure is related to the detailed technical contents and inventive features thereof. People skilled in this field may proceed with a variety of modifications and replacements based on the disclosures and suggestions of the invention as described without departing from the characteristics thereof. Nevertheless, although such modifications and replacements are not fully disclosed in the above descriptions, they have substantially been covered in the following claims as appended.

Claims

A computer peripheral, comprising:
a mouse encoder;

a global positioning system (GPS) device;

a switch module, comprising:
a first port, electrically connected to the mouse encoder; and

a second port, electrically connected to the GPS device;

a function controller for selectively allowing a signal corresponding to one of the mouse encoder and the GPS device to be transmitted out of the computer peripheral in coordination with the switch module switching between the first port and the second port.
The computer peripheral of claim 1, wherein the GPS device comprises:
a GPS chip with a universal asynchronous receiver transmitter (UART) output standard; and

a bridge, electrically connected to the GPS chip and the second port, for converting the UART output standard into a universal serial bus (USB) standard.
The computer peripheral of claim 1, wherein the function controller activates the GPS device when a signal corresponding to the GPS device is requested.
The computer peripheral of claim 3, wherein the GPS device requests the switch module to switch on the second port after the activation.
The computer peripheral of claim 1, wherein the function controller activates the mouse encoder when a signal corresponding to the mouse encoder is requested.
The computer peripheral of claim 5, wherein the mouse encoder requests the switch module to switch on the first port after the activation.
The computer peripheral of claim 1, wherein the switch module is a Bluetooth processor.
The computer peripheral of claim 1, wherein the function controller is electrically connected to the switch module to control the switching.
The computer peripheral of claim 1, wherein the first port is electrically connected to a power pin of the mouse encoder, the second port is electrically connected to a power pin of the GPS device, and the function controller controls the switch module to power on one of the mouse encoder and the GPS device.
The computer peripheral of claim 9, further comprising a first wireless processor, connected to the mouse encoder, for transmitting a signal coming from the mouse encoder out.
The computer peripheral of claim 10, further comprising a second wireless processor, connected to the GPS device, for transmitting a signal coming from the GPS device out.
The computer peripheral of claim 10, further comprising a Bluetooth processor, connected to the GPS device, for transmitting a signal coming from the GPS device out.
The computer peripheral of claim 1, wherein the function controller is one of a button and a switch.
The computer peripheral of claim 1, wherein the switch module is a firmware.